Syria put its jets under Russian protection, and the US risks all-out war if there's another strike

The
US Navy guided-missile destroyer USS Ross (DDG 71) fires a
Tomahawk cruise missile in what the Defense Department said was a
part of a strike against Syria on April 7.Reuters/obert S. Price/Courtesy U.S.
Navy

After having as many as 24 of its planes destroyed in a salvo of 59 cruise missiles from US Navy
ships in the Mediterranean Sea on April 7, Syria has repositioned
its jets to bases protected by Russian missile defenses, according to CNN.

"The Syrian air force is not in good shape," Defense Secretary
Jim Mattis told reporters at the Pentagon, according to CNN.
"It's been worn down by years of combat plus some ... significant
maintenance problems."

Still, combined with the dozens of planes from his Russian
backers, Syrian President Bashar Assad has an asymmetrical air
advantage over his adversaries — rebel groups that have little
more than a few anti-aircraft missile launchers.

The move to bases near Russian missile defenses provides Syria
with a clear deterrent against further US strikes. Experts say
Russia's S-300 and S-400 anti-air defenses can knock down
Tomahawk cruise missiles, which were used in the April 7 strike.

US officials have repeatedly stressed that they are "prepared to do more" against Assad's regime
should more evidence of the use of chemical weapons in Syria
appear, but the recent developments on the battlefield mean an
engagement would be much more dangerous.

"One air defense battalion with an S-300 has 32 missiles,"
Sutyagin said. "They will fire these against 16 targets — maybe
against cruise missiles they would fire a one-to-one ratio — but
to prevent the target from evading, you always launch two ... but
what if there are 50 targets?"

To further avoid detection, the US could use stealth aircraft
like F-22s currently stationed in the theater.

Although the US could still carry out an attack against Syrian
and Russian military targets, it would run a huge risk of killing
Russian service members. The US warned Moscow ahead of the April
7 strike on Shayrat air base.

In this situation, where the target is Russian air defenses or
planes on Russian bases, it's unclear if the Russians would back
away from their hardware, and killing Russian service members
would risk massive escalation.